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Daily Delight

Thursday, March 2, 2017

You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. –Psalm 30:11-12

After being diagnosed with a chronic illness and having
numerous surgeries, I thought that life could not get any worse for me. I was
wrong. Not too long after being released from the hospital, I came face to face
with another shocking factor that led me to become a divorced mother of one.
Fast forward two years and I’m standing over my forty-five-year-old mother,
watching her as she takes her final breath. “God, why is this happening to me?
Why can’t I just experience the joys of life?” I felt burdened and I was. I
couldn’t imagine how my eleven-year-old sister felt so I decided to move her to
Georgia and take care of her.

One thing I learned in my process is that as I continued to
draw closer to God, He drew closer to me. I remember crying out to God, pleading
for Him to restore me and all of the things that seemed to have fallen apart in
my life. He did! After being bedridden for nearly eight months, I now dance
before Him and others. Even when I dance, I receive so much joy because I am
reminded that despite things I encounter in life, He is always present. He is
there, waiting to take me by the hand and go through “life” with me. But why do
we have to experience so many hurtful things in life? He desires for us to
become “like the great oaks that He has planted for his own glory” (Isaiah
61:3). We just have to trust Him and cling to Him, remembering that He is the
Source of our strength and that He has a plan and purpose for our life. Even
when “life” happens, we have to continue to trust Him, knowing that the things
we encounter will work out for our good and bring glory to His name.

Whatever you go through in this life, no matter how hard or
devastating, God can turn your mourning into dancing and He can replace your
mourning with joy!

Shameka Nicole≫ ≫Shameka Nicole was born and raised in Mississippi. She currently resides in Georgia with her son and sister. As a published author, she has hopes of reaching so many hurting women through her testimony. She loves writing and enjoys sharing God's truth with others.